Rodriguez aiming to leave spring struggles behind him

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Probably not the way you want to tune up for a matchup with Cliff Lee.

But Wandy Rodriguez will get no more rehearsals for his April 2 date with Lee and an enigmatic but always potent Phillies lineup. It’s time to do it live.

Rodriguez’s final tuneup in Sunday’s 8-4 loss to the Detroit Tigers completed his second consecutive poor spring in poor fashion. He lasted just three of a targeted five to six innings while giving up five runs on six hits and, most glaringly, surrendering four walks.

“I felt strong with my arm, and I tried to make quality pitches, and I missed a lot,”

Rodriguez said. “You could see today in the game a lot of walks. I think that was my biggest problem.”

As the spring has progressed from lasting just 12⁄3 innings and allowing six runs in the opener to missing a start with shoulder tendinitis to tossing one of the best performances any pitcher has thrown this spring in four innings against the Nationals in his second-to-last start, it’s never been all about the results for the Astros.

More important than the results were what the Astros referred to as getting up and down — the process of cooling off and then warming back up for the next inning – and it’s seen as just as important if not more than building up the pitch count.

Rodriguez: ‘I’ll be ready’

While Rodriguez threw 90 pitches, he lasted only three innings as he needed 23 pitches to record his first out and 36 to escape the first frame. His longest outing of the spring was four innings – similar to a problem he had at the end of last spring, which he carried over into a bad first half.

Though Rodriguez’s results were better this spring – an 8.04 ERA vs. last year’s 12.10 ERA puncutated by a nine-run, seven-out start – his maximum innings count both springs was an identical four.

“We would have liked to see him do it,” Mills said of the five- to six-innings target, still shorter than the other pitchers’ because of the start that Rodriguez missed. “But we had a good talk afterwards, and he just felt he was a little strong and couldn’t command that fastball. That’s not him. When he’s able to command his fastball it just makes all his other pitches much better.”

Rodriguez agreed that he felt he was trying to throw too hard and thinks he can get it corrected.

“My problem is only a little bit today with my location, but I’ll work hard in my next side and I’ll be ready,” Rodriguez said.

Mills confident as well

The longest-tenured Astros pitcher, Rodriguez entered a new era of personal stability this offseason when he signed a three-year $34-million extension with a fourth-year option for which he had been longing.

Whether that stability can help anchor him to a more stable season is yet to be seen. Last year’s spring troubles led right into a first half that saw him go 6-11 with a 4.97 ERA before the All-Star break before he got it corrected with a 5-1 record and a 2.11 ERA afterward.

Mills has no visions of Rodriguez’s repeating that slow start this year.

“He’ll be fine,” Mills said. “I have no qualms about him throwing Saturday.”